ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with a current of thought, which deeply influenced the developments of political economy. Based on sensationist philosophy – sensations are the source of all knowledge and a guide for the behaviour of the agents who seek pleasures and avoid pains – sensationist political economy presented two main aspects, both in a free trade context. The first was developed by A.-R.-J. Turgot and his followers – M.-J.-A.-N. Caritat de Condorcet in particular – and the second by J.-J.-L. Graslin. Both lines of thought presented similar ideas in public economics, based on a quid pro quo approach and dealing, for example, with the free rider problem. But their developments are different as regards other topics. Graslin, drawing on J.-J. Rousseau’s Contrat social, developed an approach in terms of vertically integrated sectors and natural prices based on quantities of labour spent in the production of commodities. Turgot developed instead a subjective theory of value, equilibrium prices and the interest rate, as well as a theory of capitalist competition leading to an equilibrium defined by the uniformity of the profits rates in all branches. Condorcet, developing his ideas in public economics (see also Chapter 8), determined the optimal amount of public expenditure and taxes through an equilibrium at the margin. Even focusing on utility, none of these authors were utilitarians.
